One of my favorite cookbook authors has to be Isa Chandra Moskowitz, the vegan queen of cookery! I received a pre-ordered copy of her latest book, Isa Does It, the day it came out. This book is big (like Veganomicon), has great pictures and focuses on easy recipes for everyday of the week.

While I’ve made many potato-leek soups in my day, I figured I’d try her version of a classic. Some things that were different in her take is that she used cashews. There was no need for blending anything with a machine either, which I was digging. Simple, slightly chunky (even though it is still creamy), and packed with flavor! This one is a keeper!
We served it with ciabatta from our bread share with Wide Awake Bakery, a simple salad made with carrots, greens, and red cabbage from our Full Plate winter CSA, and Riesling (my wine ‘o choice)!Overall, I’d rate this soup recipe 4 out of 5 carrots on the veganlicious scale!

In my quest for coming up with my “top 5” lists, I had a very difficult time paring it down to only 5 for cookbooks. I love cookbooks and find myself reading them like novels. Therefore, this list departs a little and there are 6 gems. This could have been much longer, but I wanted to limit it to the books that I have used the most often or continue to get inspiration from. Also, there are some authors, particularly Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Nava Atlas that could easily take up the entire list, so I really had to restrain myself in picking some of their books.

The truth of the matter is that there are 6 entries because I could not decide between Veganomicon and Vegan Brunch. I literally went through both of them, counted how many recipes I’ve made, and found that there was only one recipe separating the two, so they both made the cut. I also purposely omitted dessert cookbooks because those are some natural favorites and I wanted cookbooks for everyday meals. Perhaps I’ll do a top five vegan dessert cookbooks blog post in the future.

My top 6 vegan-friendly cookbooks in no particular order are as follows:

1. Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. This cookbook is known as the bible of vegan cooking and it’s sub-title is aptly named, “The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook.” I initially bought this book many years ago after rummaging through it at Barnes and Noble and spotting the savory and sweet crepes’ recipes. Isa and Terry have all of the bases covered here. There is everything from appetizers, dips, brunch, salads and dressings to “sammiches,” soups, casseroles, one-pot meals, desserts, and more! If you were stuck on a desert island and could only take one cookbook with you, this would be it. In addition to the crepes, some of my favorite recipes from Veganomicon include Marinated Italian Tofu, Chickpea-Noodle Soup, and Pumpkin Crumb Cake with Pecan Streusel.

2. The Tofu Cookery by Louise Hagler. This is one of the first cookbooks I remember buying when I became vegan. It was very helpful when I was still trying to figure out how to prepare tofu. In the beginning, I was terrible in working with tofu, but this cookbook gave me the confidence I needed to overcome that obstacle. Today, tofu is one of my favorite foods. Some of my favorite recipes from The Tofu Cookery include Herb Stuffed Shells, Tofu Spaghetti Balls, and Pumpkin Pie (this pie recipe is hands down the best pumpkin pie recipe I’ve made to date).

4. Good Time Eatin’ in Cajun Country: Cajun Vegetarian Cooking by Donna Simón. While this book has the word “vegetarian” in the title, most of its recipes are vegan. The only non-vegan ingredient mentioned in some of the recipes is honey. Honey can be easily substituted with agave, brown rice syrup, maple syrup or whatever your favorite vegan sweetener is. I love this cookbook because a lot of my family is from the South and I like the idea of greens, mac and cheese, and other spicy meals. Most of the recipes are very simple to make and usually don’t require hard-to-find ingredients. My favorite recipes from Good Time Eatin’ in Cajun Country are Collard Greens, Parsley Potatoes, and Banana Bread.

5. Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews for All Seasons by Nava Atlas. I love to cook a hearty soup during the colder months, and this cookbook has ideas for all-year round. Even though I have many cookbooks with soup or stew recipes, this is the first one I pick up and usually is the one I find my prized soup recipe in. Favorites in Vegan Soup and Hearty Stews for All Seasons are Hearty Winter Roots Soup, Mock Chicken Noodle Soup, and Taco Soup. Even my husband loves the mock chicken noodle which uses tofu instead of chickens.

6. Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. One of the disappointments in eating out sometimes as a vegan, is finding delicious and exciting breakfast options. This cookbook is our go-to for all things breakfast and brunch. My omni husband regularly uses it when he’s in the mood for a yummy tofu scramble. There is a nice mix of sweet and savory brunch ideas, as well as side dishes, breads, drinks, and toppings. Some of our favorite Vegan Brunch recipes are Perfect Pancakes, Swiss Chard Frittata, and Tempeh Sausage Pastry Puffs.

I love a cooking challenge, whether it’s gluten-free, no salt, no oil, raw, etc. Recently a good friend was diagnosed with gestational diabetes and was instructed by a nutritionist to limit her carbohydrate intake to 30 grams or less per meal. If you have ever researched how much carbohydrates are in your daily foods, you’d be astounded. Carbohydrates are in everything! Keeping a 30 gram limit of carbs per meal can be unsettling and difficult for most of us, vegan or not. I was determined to come up with a meal that was delicious, nutritious, and within this 30 gram limit that my friend would enjoy. Based on what was in my CSA and what I knew my friend would like, I created the following menu:

Vegan Carrot Curry Soup from AllRecipes.com
Dill Tofu Frittata based off of a recipe for Shiitake Dill Fritatta from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (instead of mushrooms, I just used a white onion and two chopped scallions in its place)
Lemon Pepper Tofu, also from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra MoskowitzVegan Coleslaw from The Sweetest VeganRoasted Romanesco Cauliflower from Brooklyn Farmhouse and Purple Kale Salad (my creation, see recipe below)
1 bunch purple kale
juice from one lemon
2 TB olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Tear leaves from the stems of kale into small, bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl. Juice the lemon and mix the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour the dressing onto the kale. Toss and serve.

The meal was amazing. It was a nice blend of different tastes, textures, temperatures, and tanginess. It also renewed my love for tofu frittatas. Tofu is low-carb and high in protein. The carrot curry soup was creamy and had a nice blend of spices. This was my first time making a recipe using romanesco cauliflower, which if you’ve never seen before, is green and has Christmas tree shaped florets. Adorable! The cole slaw recipe was very simple and a refreshing side dish. The purple kale also rounded out the meal well and provided additional nutrients.

Whether one is watching their carb intake or not, this is one fancy and fun meal. Enjoy.

Wanting to spice up a pancake breakfast, I decided to make the vegan version of “pigs in a blanket.” Just calling it that makes me cringe slightly and it reminds me of the absurdities in our meat culture that the good folks over at Suicide Food have documented through the years. However, going with the common terminology that is used, I wanted to recreate it and call it that in hopes that others will stumble upon a more compassionate culinary creation.

I used the timeless recipe for Perfect Pancakes from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Vegan Brunch. I recently bought the new Tofurky Breakfast Links. They were easy to heat up and brown using a skillet and some light oil. I wrapped each one gently inside a pancake, sprinkled powdered sugar on top, served with real, local maple syrup and our breakfast was born!

I have always had a love/hate relationship with sausage. Sometimes it would gross me out, other times I found it enjoyable. Vegan sausage has been no different. The Tofurky Breakfast Links were firm and flavorful. Each link was also a whooping 10 grams of protein and fairly low carb. My omni husband liked them even more than I did though. The surrounding pancakes and sweet syrup really sealed the deal for the meal though. I would try this again and perhaps experiment with other vegan sausages.

Overall, we’d rate this meal a solid 4 1/2 out of 5 carrots on the veganlicious scale.

I’ve owned the beloved cookbook Tofu Cookery by Louise Hagler since my beginning days of vegetarianism. While I’ve had the cookbook for years, I only recently made the tofu balls that so many PPKers, particularly Isa Chandra Moskowitz herself, raves about. I didn’t have regular peanut butter, so I used the chunky version I had on hand. It made for a slightly crunchier tofu ball, but definitely worth the switch. I don’t think I cooked the balls enough (or I could have made them a tad smaller). They reheated well the next day and actually were slightly better then (perhaps because they were cooked more thoroughly).

I used some store bought whole wheat spaghetti and marinara sauce and topped them with the tofu balls, for a classic “spaghetti and meatballs” feel.

Spaghetti and tofu balls

Overall, we’d rate the tofu balls a solid 3 1/2 out of 5 carrots on the veganlicious scale!